A Collection of Moving Shakuhachi Masterpieces | Beautiful Japanese Melodies That Stir the Heart

Banshikichō / Shinkore

Banshikicho, Shin no Kyorei by Sho Yamaguchi

One of the core pieces of the Kinko-ryu repertoire, this work forms the foundation of the Kinko school.

It is one of the eighteen pieces listed in the Omote collection, titled “Koden no Honte” (Ancient Transmission, Fundamental Hand).

When played on an 8-sun flute and set, as the name suggests, in the Banshikicho mode, it is said to be very difficult to perform—for example, it requires producing a deeply meri’d D (the F pitch, the same as “tsu”), among other challenges.

descending leaves

Sagariha no Kyoku (The Melody of Descending Leaves) by Sho Yamaguchi

It is one of the classical honkyoku pieces for shakuhachi.

It is a core piece in the Kinko-ryu, Kinpu-ryu, and Myoan Shinpo-ryu traditions.

It is also written and referred to by variant names such as Sagariha (or Sagarinami), Oriha, Ge-riha, Sagariha, and Kudariba.

It is said to have been played as the tune accompanying the floats as they returned during the Gion Festival.

Akita Sugagaki

Akita Sugagaki (Akita Sugagaki) Yamaguchi Sho

One of the Kinko-ryū honkyoku pieces, known as Kinko-ryū.

It is also called Akita no Kyoku, Akita Sugagaki, Toyo no Akita (the name used in the Meian Shinpō-ryū or in the Kyushu region), and Fūtai-ken Den Reibo.

It is said to be an adaptation from a folk song of the Akita region.

Echigo Mitani

Traditional Music Digital Library: Shakuhachi Performance “Echigo Mitani”

A type of classical shakuhachi honkyoku called “Mitsuya.” This version was handed down at Myoan-ji, a Komusō temple located in Echigo (present-day Niigata Prefecture), commonly known as Echigo Myoan-ji.

Its formal title is “Mitsuya of the Echigo Myoan-ji lineage.” Due to multiple fires, the temple was ultimately relocated to Nakanohara, but prior to that it was in the Shimoda-go area of Minamikanbara District.

For this reason, it is also called Shimoda Mitsuya (Shitada Sanya, also read Shimoda Sanya) after the place name.

While its overall structure is almost the same as Mitsuya pieces transmitted in other lineages—such as the Myoan-ji tradition, the Hoteiken lineage, and the Kimpū-ryū lineage—the manner of expression (including techniques like kubi-furi, or “neck shaking”) is quite distinctive, giving it a completely different atmosphere.

Anvil Nest Cage

Shakuhachi Classical Honkyoku, Kinko-ryu: Kinuta Sugomori

This is a classical shakuhachi honkyoku, a type of Sugomori-ji/Kinuta-ji piece.

It belongs to the Kinko-ryū honkyoku repertoire and is one of the uragumi (back-group) pieces.

It is said that Ashi no Shirabe and Kari Netabashira are played as prelude pieces.

The origin of the piece is unknown; it is attributed to the third Kinko (some say the second).

It is sometimes written as Kinuta-tsuru-sugomori.

The mode is Akebono; it does not appear to be from the Ikkan-ryū.

As the final piece of the uragumi and being in the Akebono mode, it preserves a particularly strong sense of antiquity compared to other Kinko-ryū honkyoku.

“Kinuta” refers to a traditional household tool used to beat washed and dried clothes with a stick or mallet to remove remaining moisture and smooth out wrinkles—an old folk implement whose sound was said to be heard at night from homes everywhere.

Due to its human-made yet striking rhythm, it has been adopted in pieces for koto and shamisen, used as a theme in waka poetry, and has influenced various performing arts.

The Mind Unattached (Song)

Divine Nyodō Melody, “The Song of the Unabiding Mind,” by Nagai Nyohō

This is one of the pieces by Jinnyodo.

Around the summer of 1938 (Showa 13), he traveled to Shanghai as a private envoy to promote Japan–China friendship, and this piece was improvised based on the impressions from that trip.

There had been an arrangement for him to perform a piece at Chiang Kai-shek’s residence, but due to a twist of fate it seems that it never came to pass.

The piece bears the hallmark mannerisms of Master Jinnyodo, combining the best elements of classical honkyoku such as Ajikan and Shoganken Reibo, giving it a distinctive and appealing character—and thus great popularity.

Another notable feature is the inclusion of the so-called “tsudzumi-blowing,” a style that employs dynamic contrasts to create a sense of depth and distance.

Purple Bell Method

Meian Shinpō-ryū: Composed by Zen Master Ikkyū – Shirin Hōkyoku / Shōdō Sakai Sound Source Library 017 / Murasaki Reihō no Kyoku / Library 017

A classical shakuhachi honkyoku, also known as Murasaki Reiho, Murasakino Reibo, or Murasaki no Kyoku; in the Dokyoku tradition it is also called Murasaki Shoden.

It is a type of Reibo, and there is an anecdote that it was composed by Zen master Ikkyu Sojun of Daitoku-ji in Murasakino, Kyoto, famous for his wit.

Even among classical honkyoku, the musical character is quite simple, conveying a cheerful charm within its plain, unaffected style.

It is a piece that evokes the style of hitoyogiri (the one-joint flute).